Outlander fans are most certainly eager for the show to once again shine a spotlight on the steamy sex lives of Claire and Jamie when it returns in the fall for a third season. But as the show picks up after the time-torn lovers have been separated by both their respective native eras — he in 18th-century Scotland, she two centuries later — and the passage of 20 years, will their inevitable reunion sex be as hot as viewers are accustomed to? Why, of course!
“Do you think that older people can’t have sex? Is that your question?†laughed star Caitriona Balfe (Claire) at the 12th Annual Oscar Wilde Awards, where the Irish model turned actor was honored by the U.S.-Irish Alliance.
Spoiler alert for non-Outlander readers: The third season of the series will, of course, be based on the plot of Voyager, the third novel in author Diana Gabaldon’s bestselling book series. In it, Claire time-travels back to 1765 and at last reunites with Jamie — who survived the brutal Battle of Culloden and lived a shadowy but always adventurous life as two decades passed — and, despite some unexpected complications, the two ultimately find themselves back in bed together.
“I think if anything, when Jamie and Claire get together again, their love is timeless and who they are inside is timeless,†explained Balfe, who donned subtle age makeup to move Claire into her late-40s/early-50s in the latter episodes of the second season. “It was an interesting challenge to play older,†she revealed. “That was the fun part about this season: to sort of take that and try to see what 20 years of life does to a person.†But age is also just a number: Claire and Jamie’s passions will still run very, very hot, she promises. “In terms of the sex, I think old people have good sex too, last I heard!â€